Sara Bareilles

Bareilles: Genuine talent

Little Voice

After Love Song had wormed its way into our heads – hear it once, sing chorus all day, annoy loved ones – we'd assumed that American singer-songwriter Sara Bareilles was another one of those precocious pop poppets.

You know the ones: lycra, a carefully crafted fun-but-sexy image, a massive marketing budget... And we were wrong. Bareilles is a 28-year old who's been around a while, learning her craft the old-fashioned way.

She's less manufactured chart fodder, more Nerina Pallot meets Aimee Mann. She's got a clear grasp of the power of a good tune and an obvious understanding of post-Beatle pop sensibilities, but with a sultry voice and a line in confessional lyrics that reward closer listening.

Downside? There's a couple of tracks here that suggest the label demanded singles. But if tracks like Between The Lines draw people in to discover the lived in charms of Many The Miles, then what the hell.

It's a fine sort-of debut (there is, apparently, a self-produced earlier album out there somewhere) that suggests Ms Bareilles is going to be around for a good few years.

They say: 'Nerina Pallot covering Elton John's Benny and the Jets... does it inspire, make you want to dance or laugh or cry? Nah. Expect to hear it very soon while shopping in Gap.' The Times

We say: Nerina Pallot crossed with Elton John is a bad thing? It's quality pop for grown-ups with enough to suggest Bareilles is a name worth watching.

Best track: The aforementioned Many The Miles.

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